Cox, who was most recently seen on her FX drama, Dirt, is returning to the small screen for a three-episode arc as Sacred Heart's newest Chief of Medicine. The position was left open after Dr. Kelso (Ken Jenkins) retired at the end of last season. Since Cox is only going to be on the show for a handful of episodes, something tells me that she's not going to do well in her new position. Her character is said to "ruffle some feathers," and it sounds like she's ruffling the wrong ones right out the door.

You don't usually get cancellation or pick-up announcements about TV shows at a charity fund-raising event. But that's what happened yesterday at the "A Time for Heroes" Celebrity Carnival benefiting the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, or the "ATFH"CCBTEGPAF for short. When asked about the chances of her FX series getting picked up for a third season, Courteney Cox announced that Dirt has been canceled.

The show was never really embraced whole-heartedly, either critically or in the ratings, but it managed a second shot. Unfortunately for Cox and company, that second season was cut short by the WGA Strike, and as with many bubble shows, it just fell by the wayside. Maybe the tweaking they did to the format for Season Two, making it lighter and more accessible to the casual viewer turned off more of their hardcore fans than they anticipated. Maybe the ratings it was getting just weren't enough for FX to pick back up production after the strike. Maybe David Arquette had a habit of showing up on the set in his BVDs and it finally just got to be too much for the cast and crew, so they walked. Or maybe Shane dropped a grenade in Lucy's lap in that finale they just never got a chance to film.

(S02E07) "Death. I get it. It's guaranteed. I understand that. But why does it seem that everybody is so oblivious to the fact that they're swimming in deep water until they drown?" - Lucy

That's a really unfortunate quote. And to be dropped in the middle of the season (and potential series) finale? Ouch. Dirt really could be so much better and unfortunately, it just isn't. The problem is, I'm not so sure the writers, producers, and execs at FX realize it. Think about it. This was supposed to a normal 13 episode season. In my opinion, only one out of the seven episodes that got made was worth my time. At that rate, the second half of the season wouldn't have been much better. But no one stepped in and nothing changed. You would think, that after the mediocrity of the first couple of episodes, things would have started to look up. They never did.

I remember when I spoke with Courteney Cox a few months ago about the upcoming season of Dirt, she said something about every episode being self-contained. Well, I beg to differ. If you missed last week's installment, then you were almost completely in the dark last night. This was a direct continuation of the previous hour and while I loved it last week, Dirt did was it does best and took another nosedive.

There have just been so many opportunities to really make this show more than it is and every time something with potential makes a splash, it gets killed. Literally this time.

I know I ragged on Dirt last week for the direction it was taking this season, and while most of that complaining is still deserved, I have to admit -- this episode deserves a certain level of respect.

Britney Spears is everywhere. Every tabloid, every TV news magazine, and every gossip blog. The writers and producers behind Dirt were pretty much obligated to tackle her story in some way, shape, or form. It would have been awkward if a show like this didn't include it. That being said, they really could have screwed it up and made it painful to watch. But... I don't think they did.

(S02E04) "What? We got two great stories and Holt's Dad is a Nazi. What could be better?" - Lucy

Alright, it's official. I'm jumping on the bandwagon. Let's be honest -- this episode was not good. I was first in line to defend the creative changes that Dirt went through in-between seasons, but it's reached a point where issues that absolutely need to be addressed are being pushed aside for irrelevant new characters and pointless scenes. I can accept the fact that the serial format of the show has been ditched. As someone who watches a boatload of TV, I actually appreciate the fact that Dirt is now a show which no longer requires absolute attention for fear of missing something important. Self-contained episodes aren't necessarily a bad thing. But you can't just forget about the past.

Well that episode was out there. It brought back some old faces, introduced a few new ones, and split off into two wildly different tangents. On one side we saw a new side of Lucy as she aimed to bring down a past Dirt Now target while at the same time we saw Don placed in a situation that would have bee much more amusing had he stopped taking his medication.

(S02E02) "Let's just figure out how her Daddy's gonna use his money to get his little girl off... did I just say that? Huh, oddly aroused." - Lucy

At first glance, Dirt may not look all that original to a new viewer. Granted we're only two episodes into the new season, but bear with me for a second. In the most noticeable departure from last season, these first two installments have relied heavily on recent tabloid headlines. It was something we saw in season one (such as Rick Fox's portrayal of a basketball star based loosely on his former teammate Kobe Bryant), but not as much. The fun this season comes from seeing where the tabloid headlines end and the creativity of Dirt's writers begins.

(S02E01) "No honey, I love the pudding. You can have the applesauce." - Lucy

Lucy Spiller is back! Hold your breath though because those stab wounds she received from Julia Mallory in last season's Dirt finale must've taken away some of her trademark bitchiness. Lucy, while still 100% dedicated and obsessed with her job as editor of Dirt Now magazine, is a lot nicer than I remember her to be. Is that a bad thing though?

With the season two premiere of FX's Dirt just around the corner (this coming Sunday, March 2nd, at 10:00PM), you may have noticed that the ad campaign is in full effect. The image to the right has been adorning everything from billboards in Times Square to magazine pages.

For those that weren't familiar with season one, you might have thought that this was an entirely new show altogether. If you recall the ad campaign for season one, at first glance the show looked much more darker, and it was. The ads depicted Courtney Cox (as ruthless tabloid editor Lucy Spiller) pale faced, in a blood red dress, overlooking Hollywood -- the breeding ground for her next headline. Not the case this season as you can see by the much more jovial, comic book feel of the new ads. As much as I loved the first season, it was nothing that I expected it to be. Trust me when I say that season two very quickly makes up for that deception.

I've now had the chance to screen the first two episodes and even got the opportunity to sit in on a conference call with Cox last week. Read on for my thoughts on season two, some quotes from the mouth of the woman who plays Lucy Spiller, and a sneak peek of the premiere episode. Be warned though -- this does contain spoilers.

Ever since we heard that the writers' strike is close to being settled, we started wondering whether networks were going to restart production on all the shows that stopped or if they were going to call it a season and wait until next year. In the case of FX, at least, we know the answer: they're going to call it a season.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, FX's spring series Dirt and The Richeswill both have shortened second seasons, airing only the seven episodes each series made before running out of scripts. The network is citing economic realities in the decision; I'd imagine rebuilding sets and getting new permits, etc. is a pretty expensive thing to do, especially for a cable network.

To enter, simply leave a comment below before 5:00PM Eastern, Friday, February 1, simply telling us why you'd like to own the set. As always, we'll randomly choose five winners amongst the eligible entries. Some other details:

To enter, leave a confirmed comment below stating why you'd like to own Dirt season one on DVD.

The comment must be left before February 1, 2008 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.

You may enter only once.

Five winners will be selected in a random drawing.

Five winners will receive a copy of Dirt season one on DVD (valued at $39.99).

ER's Doug and Carol together again? Don't hold your breath unless you can do so for at least three more years.

Julianna Margulies, who's starring in the FOX mid-season replacement Canterbury's Law, says that she'd love to do another project with former ER love interest George Clooney. But the actress,who left the hospital drama in 2000, wants there to be a full decade in between projects so that fans won't think of them as lovebirds.

The folks over at iTunes have created this handy list for people who want to spend some time this summer catching up on the television shows that don't get as much buzz (anything that's not Lost, Grey's Anatomy, 24). The list includes full seasons of Friday Night Lights, Jericho, 30 Rock, The Shield, Battlestar Galactica, Stargate, The Riches, Dirt and Eureka. Also? You can bask in the glory of hastily canceled shows like Andy Barker, P.I., Veronica Mars, and The Black Donnellys. Oh, and Studio 60 is on there, but I wouldn't call that a "hastily" canceled show. (The current--and final--season of The Loop is also on iTunes, though it's not on the 'Missed' list)

This is a great idea. Many of the shows listed get a lot of buzz on sites like ours (because our readers know good television), but the general population doesn't seem to catch on. If only How I Met Your Mother would get on iTunes... it could definitely use some more fans as it heads into season 3.

It's official. FX has ordered second seasons of Dirt and The Riches, something Joel already said was likely to happen. With multiple showings during the week, both Dirt and The Riches are getting upwards of 5-6 million viewers per week. Those numbers are comparable to The Shield and Rescue Me.

Plus, FX has suddenly changed its mind about Rescue Me's placement on the schedule. This weekend, I told you that the premiere date was set for Tuesday, June 12th. Well, as of today that premiere has been bumped back to Wednesday, June 13th and Rescue Me will air on Wednesdays at 10 pm through the summer.

Glenn Close's new drama, Damages, will take the Tuesday night 10 pm slot starting July 24th.

In case you're keeping track, that brings FX to six original dramas, more than any other cable network.